The morris



H n HR 1B EU I WR a d 0 M o W Patented Nov. 30. 1897.-

N WITNESSES:

. Eg -Ila; 'H

BY J

. ed to swing on said shaft 1.

NITED STATES PATENT FFICE.)

\VILLIAM WVEIHL, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

ELECTRIC BR AKE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 594,665, dated November 30, 1897.

Application filed October 22, 1896. Serial No. 609,749- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM VVEIHL, a subject of the Emperor of Germany, and a resident of New York, in the county and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Brakes, of which the following is a specification.

My invention has reference to electromechanical brakes for vehicles,-and especially for trolley-cars, it having for its objects, first, to provide means whereby the brakes may be applied either by the electric current or manually, and, secondly, to provide means whereby the slack or lost motion of the brake-beam may be taken up electrically and the brake applied manually, or vice versa.

The nature of my invention will best be understood when described in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 represents a bottom view of a car provided with my improved braking apparatus, part being broken away. Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2 2, Fig. 1.

Similar letters and numerals of reference designate corresponding parts throughout both views of the drawings.

Referring to the drawings, the letter A designates the bottom of a car. B is one of the platforms, and O is the truck, provided with means for supporting the axles D and D of the wheels E and E, all said parts being of any usual well-known construction. Midway between the wheels is located a shaft 1, rigidly mounted in suitable bearings in the truck-frame and carrying thereon four sets of movable electromagnets F F and G G, each set in the present instance consisting of two electromagnets connected by arms 2, mount- On the truckframe are mounted two levers 3 4, centrally pivoted at 5 on opposite sidesof said electromagnets and connected with one arm of each set of electromagnets by links 6 and 7, respectively. The levers 3 and 4 are connected to the brake-beams H and H in a usual manner as follows: A rod 8 connects one end of the lever 4 with one end of brake-beam H, and a rod 9 connects lever 3 with one end of the brake-beam H. Between the pivot 5 of the brake-lever and the end to which the rod 8 is attached is pivoted a rod 10, connecting with the opposite end of the brake-beam H.

A similarly-arranged rod 11 connects the lever 3 with the brake-beam H. A second set of arms of each pair of electromagnets is connected byrods 12 and 13 with the brake-beams. To each of the levers and at the end opposite to that having the connection with the brakebeam are attached the brake-rods I I, which are provided at their free ends with racks 14, engaged by gears 15, attached to the brakehandle 16, of a usual construction. The brakerods are guided in boxes 17 in a usual manner. A spring-pawl 18 engages a ratchet-wheel 19 on the brake-handle for a purpose hereinafter specified. The electromagnets F F and G G are placed in theQmain circuit of the wires, and the circuit through the same may be closed by a switch or preferably a controller J, of a usual construction. A controller is preferred for the purpose of gradually increasing-the quantity of current through the coils of the electromagnets.

It is now very evident that if the circuit is closed through the coils of the electromagnets the same will be drawn into line, or substantially so, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 2, thereby turning the levers 3 and 4 and applying the brakes. In case the current should fail to work the brakes the same may be applied by means of the brake-handle 16, rack and gear 14 and 15, and the rod I in the usual manner. I

In constructing the braking apparatus the electromagnets may be made sufficiently large to apply the brakes with sufficient power to stop the car, or they may be made smaller and simply used to take up the slack or lost motion of the brake-beams, so that the brakehandle is in position to cause pressure on the wheels the instant the handle is turned, whereby the time in which the car can be stopped is greatly decreased. The pawl-andratchet mechanism of the hand-brake, it will be noticed, prevents the release of the brakes even after the current ceases, and their release must be effected by the motor-man.

. It is evident that any one of the devices known for closing the circuit immediately upon turning the manual-brake handle could be employed in the present instance instead of having a separately-operated controller.

The electromagnets are returned to their normal positions by the dropping of the ICO brake-beams, which latter are hung in the usual manner.

"What I claim as new is In a brake for electrically-propelled vehides, the combination of electromagnets mounted to vibrate, an operative connection between the same and the brake-beam, means for closing a circnit through the electromagnets, a hand brake provided with a gearwheel, a brake-rod connected with the operating-lever of the electric-brake system and provided with a rack engaging with the gear- Wheel on the hand brake, and a ratchetwheel and pawl in connection with said handbrake, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed my name, in presenee of two witnesses, this 22d day of September, 189G.

WILLIAM \VEIHL.

Witnesses:

EUGENIE A. PERSIDES, A. FABER DU FAUR, Jr. 

